January 6, 2008 -- The Weinstein Co. is in talks with the
Writers Guild of America about a deal that would allow the
movie studio to hire striking Hollywood scribes for its film
projects...The studio is said to be waiting for Tom Cruise's
United Artists to announce a similar interim pact with union
leaders before it agrees to do the same...The deal is said to
be a "me-too" agreement, meaning the Weinsteins would agree to
adopt whatever terms the writers and the producers ultimately
reach.

The WGA is trying to increase pressure on the major networks by
signing deals with the smaller independents. Although the
strategy is putting some writers back to work, it has not yet
forced the studios back to the bargaining table (leaving the WGA
with nothing to do but whine about Jay Leno's "writing" his
monologue).